is it possible to "leak" electricity?

lorhen1966 · 13 December 2016 at 2:07PM

For a number of years now every time we have looked into switching our energy and spoken to an adviser we have been asked "how much" or "are you sure" when questioned about our electric usage. Ive been online to our existing energy provider and on a comparison with 1349 other similar users we are paying 126% more than average which ties in with figures from Uswitch, Utility Warehouse and Ovo too. Apparently the national average for a high energy user is between 4000 and 5000KWpH and our usage for the last 4 years has been 8858, 8990, 8526 and 9488.

I rang their energy efficiency helpline and didn't get anywhere so would be ever so grateful if anyone could tell me how we start looking into this. Can the wiring be faulty and therefore be using more than it needs? sorry to sound thick but I really don't know how to detect something I cant see, hear or smell.

spadoosh · 13 December 2016 at 2:20PM

Appliances take what they need to work. So a 2kw will draw up to 2 kw. Your wiring etc doesnt 'push' electric through.

There will be something on the circuit that is drawing the amount you use.

Start by turning off the fuses and seeing if the numbers move. You can then go round and look at every appliance taking note particularly of those that draw large amounts of energy.

Good places to start are anything that provides heat (cookers, radiators, immersion etc). Then look at white goods.

It does sounds like you use a lot but without any details its hard to get specific. You could live in a 6 bed house be at home all day, have 30 year old appliances, and electrically sourced heating. In which case it wouldnt be that much.

Think of everything that uses electricity in your house and check it.

ETA you will be looking for something like this on every appliance (they will have them)

Rubidium · 13 December 2016 at 2:24PM

Electricity can't leak but you could possibly have a faulty meter.

You can easily do a quick test e.g. read the meter, use an electric kettle or heater of known wattage for a set time and then read the meter again to check that the correct amount has been registered.

You need to ask yourself "why are we high users?" What do you have that is using a lot of electricity. List your electrical items if you want help here, otherwise we can't really comment.

Cardew · 13 December 2016 at 2:47PM

lorhen1966 wrote: »

For a number of years now every time we have looked into switching our energy and spoken to an adviser we have been asked "how much" or "are you sure" when questioned about our electric usage. Ive been online to our existing energy provider and on a comparison with 1349 other similar users we are paying 126% more than average which ties in with figures from Uswitch, Utility Warehouse and Ovo too. Apparently the national average for a high energy user is between 4000 and 5000KWpH and our usage for the last 4 years has been 8858, 8990, 8526 and 9488.

I range their energy efficiency helpline and didn't get anywhere so would be ever so grateful if anyone could tell me how we start looking into this. Can the wiring be faulty and therefore be using more than it needs? sorry to sound thick but I really don't know how to detect something I can see, hear or smell.

You haven't said if you use electricity for heating and hot water??

The national average for electricity consumption is 3,200kWh pa for those who have gas/oil/LPG/solid fuel for heating and hot water.

To answer your question, no electricity cannot 'leak'. Some guy called Albert Einstein proved that you cannot destroy energy. So any 'leaking electricity' would manifest itself as heat, and even 1kWh - let alone 4000kWh - would be enough to set a house on fire or cause severe damage,

Carrot007 · 13 December 2016 at 2:56PM

Do you have an electric shower? I did at my last place and loved long showers. It easily accounted for half my usage.

spadoosh · 13 December 2016 at 3:07PM

Carrot007 wrote: »

Do you have an electric shower? I did at my last place and loved long showers. It easily accounted for half my usage.

Even with a high end electric shower you would need to be in it for 380 hrs a year to get the discrepancy between high electric users and how much the OP uses. I suspect its a culmination of inefficiencies.

lorhen1966 · 13 December 2016 at 3:22PM

Thank you, that is really useful information. I know that we are classed as high users and have compared with other users using the following parameters, detached house, 5 bedrooms (only 4 used), 5 people, built in 1989. Loft is insulated and cavity walls are insulated. Heated by gas central heating which goes on at 7am for 2 hours and then back on again at 3pm until 11pm weekdays, its on a bit more at the weekend. Underfloor heating in extension which was added in 2008, boiler and electric circuit board replaced at the same time. No electric fires etc. Main appliances are 2 fridge freezers, dishwasher, washing machine, tumble drier, microwave, induction hob, oven replaced in 2014 for more energy efficient one, 2 desktop computers, 9 TVs but max of 3 on at a time, usually in the evening for 4/5 hours, Sky Q with 3 mini boxes, plus everything else everyone else has ie kettle, iron, vacuum cleaner etc. Nothing stays on standby, all gets switched off when not being used. My main worry is whether the wiring is safe. We have a digital meter which only displays 5 digits and Ive taken a reading at 2pm this afternoon. I will read it again at 2pm for the next few days to see if I can get a daily usage figure.

lorhen1966 · 13 December 2016 at 3:23PM

Carrot007 wrote: »

Do you have an electric shower? I did at my last place and loved long showers. It easily accounted for half my usage.

Forgot about the showers, yes there are 2 electric ones and another that user the hot water from the system, all are used every day

lorhen1966 · 13 December 2016 at 3:26PM

Cardew wrote: »

To answer your question, no electricity cannot 'leak'. Some guy called Albert Einstein proved that you cannot destroy energy. So any 'leaking electricity' would manifest itself as heat, and even 1kWh - let alone 4000kWh - would be enough to set a house on fire or cause severe damage,

this is the main reason for my concern, I'm not sure about the wiring in this house

spadoosh · 13 December 2016 at 3:41PM

lorhen1966 wrote: »

this is the main reason for my concern, I'm not sure about the wiring in this house

I cant imagine your wiring is dodgy, you just use a copious amount of energy.

If you want to save some money. Avoid using the UFH (assuming its not a wet system), avoid using the electric showers and use the gas one instead, get rid of second fridge freezer (do you have that much food for 4 people, ive shared a fridge freezer with 8 people before?!). For starters as easy to reduce.

Rubidium · 13 December 2016 at 3:47PM

lorhen1966 wrote: »

this is the main reason for my concern, I'm not sure about the wiring in this house

I don't think that you need to concern yourself about the wiring - as Cardew has said if the high consumption was due to faulty wiring, then your house would have burnt down by now and your usage has been consistently high for several years!

You have not mentioned lighting? If you have lots of halogen lights, they can use many kWh e.g. 12 x 50W in your kitchen = 600W alone for one room and if you have halogens, these should be replaced by energy efficient LED's giving a massive saving.

is it possible to "leak" electricity?

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